Battle over apartments brews in Alamo Heights

A Dallas developer wants to capitalize on Alamo Heights' well-to-do residential lifestyle by building a $30 million luxury apartment complex along Broadway.

But when it comes to housing in this tightly knit community, apartment buildings aren't going to win any popularity contests. As a residential refuge from downtown, Alamo Heights has only one apartment community in its city limits — and some residents aim to keep it that way.

The Alamo Heights Gateway is a proposed 210-unit mixed-use development at Broadway and Austin Highway.

As planned, it would incorporate about 5,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor and three levels of underground parking. The parcels that make up the 1.7-acre property include privately-owned land, two public streets, abutting rights of way and green space.

Alamo Manhattan, the developer, still needs city approval for the project before it can buy the land and move forward with the development.

The high-end apartment project would resembles some of the midrise developments along the Broadway corridor near the Pearl Brewery — and would be priced similarly, with rents around $2 per square foot.

Those near-downtown apartments have attracted a wave of residents that, in turn, has spurred more multi-family investment in the area.

“There's a conspicuous gap in (apartment) development” in Alamo Heights, said Matt Segrest, president of Alamo Manhattan. “A luxury apartment project is sorely needed in Alamo Heights because one doesn't exist. That's one of the highest-end areas in the entire city, and it doesn't have high-end apartments.

“We see it as a need for young professionals, empty nesters.”

The project's location, he added, is far enough from nearby neighborhoods that the development won't negatively impact any homes.

But the property's small footprint requires the developer to build vertically in order to get the project to a density that generates a return on investment.

There are multifamily districts within Alamo Heights that allow for apartment construction.

However, the city's comprehensive plan limits those projects to smaller developments that blend with the surrounding neighborhoods.

As it's currently proposed, the scope of the six-story project doesn't fit with city's comprehensive plan, which limits a building's height to three stories. Also, some constituents aren't convinced more apartments are needed in the city limits.

“We don't see a need for them in Alamo Heights,” Reveley said. “We like being a small town. They can build those down Austin Highway and Broadway — as many as they want. We don't want them.

“We're not trying to be rude. We're just trying to explain that it's not part of our picture. Because you know what will happen? If we allow this to happen with this one building, we will have set a precedent for other developers to come in and just build (apartments) straight down Broadway.”

In an effort to keep the development from winning approval, Reveley started an online petition that has received about 150 signatures and has made yard signs condemning the project.

Opponents of the project also say the apartment complex would adversely affect traffic patterns at the intersection.

But Mayor Louis Cooper isn't convinced that allowing the development would open the door for similar projects. He said more large-scale projects just won't fit because there isn't enough available land within the city limits.

Also, he said residents who back the project have told him the area needs an economic boost and that the Alamo Manhattan project could provide it.

“Our downtown, in their mind, is decaying,” Cooper said about the project's proponents. “And that we need to do something, and we need to do something big and bold.”

Although he's heard from both camps, Cooper isn't taking sides. Still, he did say that more apartments do have a place in the city because they add to the population, which in turn helps businesses prosper.

“It would be nice to have something new,” Cooper said, adding that the project still needs to be vetted by the city. “I don't know if this development is the perfect thing, yet. It's still in progress.

“At some size that can be acceptable to everyone, I think it would be a very nice project to have. And the job of council is not to be swayed by the number of people for it or against it, and judge it strictly on the merits of the project and what it can do to benefit the city.”

On Dec. 2, the city's planning and zoning commission will consider the developer's request to rezone the property. Also, the company is asking for a special-use permit that would grants several exemptions to Alamo Heights' building code.

Alamo Manhattan wants to increase the number of allowable units to 240 (from 110) and the maximum height allowance to 65 feet (from 35 feet).

The developer also wants to decrease the number of required parking spaces from two per unit to 11/2 per unit.

If the planning and zoning commission takes action, the City Council could vote on the matter Dec. 9.

Currently, the only apartment community in the city is the Treehouse apartments, which was built in 1971, according to data from research firm Austin Investor Interests, which tracks multifamily developments that are 50 units and greater.

Even with the aging apartment stock, the rental rate for that area is 96 cents per square foot and the occupancy rate is 94 percent, both of which are on par with the San Antonio metro area average.

While the apartment stock is relatively affordable, single-family homes values in Alamo Heights are among the highest in the metro area.

In October, the median sales price for a home in Alamo Heights was $315,000, almost twice as much as the San Antonio area's median sales price, according to data from the San Antonio Board of Realtors.

“The area is desirable,” said Janine Claycomb of Austin Investor Interests. “If they could build that project on that corner, I think it would fill up in a heartbeat.”